Diversity: Liability or Asset?

By Haneefah Adamu

Nigeria is highly diverse and rich in its culture. From North to South, Nigeria’s rich heritage speaks volumes of the resourcefulness and diligence of the people.

After the amalgamation of cities from the fringes of the northern deserts of Africa down to the coastal cities of the Atlantic waters in the south, Nigeria came to being. As one of the most indigenously diverse nations in the world, its diversity is mirrored in a spectrum of principles and aspects, views and counterviews and discipline and tolerance. This 1914 amalgamation fused together over a hundred million people, with over two hundred and fifty ethnic groups that spoke over four thousand dialects.

Ninety-eight years ago, the amalgamation could have been argued as a mistake during the time when the issue was still open for debate or when the man behind the genius idea, Lord Lugard, called it an experiment and also acknowledged that, “The North and the South are like oil and water, they will never mix”.
It is true that oil and water never mix, but we can barely run a powerful engine
without oil and water. Therefore, I do not see the fusion of Nigeria as an experiment or a liability, but something far better which was meant to be and which will take Nigeria to even greater heights of realizations and true victory.

Prior to 1914, citizens could not have imagined what life would be with the blend of citizens from the north coming together with that of the south to live as one. In 2012, we cannot imagine it any other way. The thoughts and beliefs of our forefathers about the amalgamation should not be a basis for judgment, because they had little or no clue what the future held, and as for our generation, we only have relic stories or second hand narratives of what life was before 1914 and a few decades later.

The marriage paved the way for the departure of the British from Nigeria and ultimately, a sovereign Nigeria.

With diversity such as Nigeria’s, it’s cumbersome to maintain. How many other countries can boast of people with such diverse attitudes and values? It prepares us for the world at large, as we’re already able to accept that people are different and have their peculiarities. I believe that our daily lives have become fully Nigerian and we are all products of one society. We should, therefore, focus on seeing the beauty of diversity rather than see it as a threat and be tolerant of one another because there is strength in numbers. And only then we can use our numbers and diversity to our upmost advantage.

Our amalgamation is the best thing that happened to Nigeria. Let’s face it, no tribe can exist without the other because in brotherhood we stand. I believe that purposeful leadership can tackle the challenges which diversity poses for governance. In fact, we need to appreciate that our cultural and social diversity constitute an asset rather than a liability.